May 11, 2018: Mailbag!

gforce writes: ” Have you heard any new info (that you can discuss) about any possible new Stargate series/movie/anything? All news from that seems to have fallen into a wormhole.”

Answer: I’m out of the loop on the Stargate front. On the heels of the SGO release, Stargate fandom rallied online to show support for a fourth series that could be a launch point for new viewers yet pay homage to the 17 seasons of Stargate that came before. It was an amazing display of fan loyalty and, while I didn’t expect the campaign would spur MGM to make any sort of official announcement concerning the fate of the franchise, I assumed they would at least acknowledge the amazing fan effort. Their disregard of the campaign was genuinely surprising, disappointing and, in my estimation, doesn’t bode well for longtime fans.

Chem_Is_Try writes: “I have a question for the mailbag about a shooting location I’ve seen in several episodes of Stargate SG-1 and Atlantis. It is a long, dark, narrow hallway with a long pipe and several smaller ones running along the ceiling, and concrete block walls. For example, in SGA episode Sateda Ronon is being pursued by the Wraith, and he enters the hallway. He collects weapons and body armor from the corpses of his fellow Satedans.

I’m guessing it’s in the Vancouver area somewhere, but where? I’ve scoured IMDb to see if it’s mentioned anywhere, but can’t find any reference to that location. It’s driving me nuts. Is it a basement hallway somewhere?”

Answer: Honestly tough to say. I do know that much of Sateda was shot at location called Terminal City, named after a show of the same name.

Duane Kennedy writes: “Quick question about dark matter , two has a child, did the child inherit any of the “enhancements” that are caused by the nanites? Also have you tried Max of Manila for fried chicken?”

Answer: No, the child would not have inherited any of TWO’s enhancements. She would have been as vulnerable as any other child. As for Max of Manila – no, but I’m intrigued.

Tam Dixon writes: ” Okay, one question: how are NOT overweight?”

Answer: My age is catching up with me. Once, my cardio would consist of 45 minutes of full on running. Over the past couple of years, it’s been adjusted to alternating brisk walks and sprints, then a 2:1 brisk walk to sprint ratio and, lately, 4 minutes of brisk walking for every minute sprinted. Also, I think I pulled something in my shoulder. I need the nanite upgrade.

Answer: Maku-chan is how Akemi refers to Mark – “Maku” being the Japanese equivalent of Mark, and “chan” being a more causal honorific (less formal than Mr. or Miss), usually referred for close friends. It’s used for adults who are considered cute and, really, I can’t think of anyone cuter than Marc Bendavid.

Wayne Hughes writes: “Hey Joe, Do you think that there is too many T.V. shows being produced theses days? I think there is about a dozen Marvel shows alone.”

Answer: I think that they should continue producing as many shows as viewers will support. Having said that, I feel like we’re reaching critical mass. The other day, I had a friend say: “There’s nothing to watch on Netflix” which kind of surprised me but then, upon further reflection, made a certain sense. We are overwhelmed with choices and many, rather than wade through the selection process, simply give up.

coveredincathair writes: “Any news on the Stargate front???”

Answer: See above. I heard a rumor that there was a fourth series idea in play, one that would have completed ignored the pre-existing t.v. series, but interest in it was lukewarm. Again, just a rumor, but interesting.

Quantum Mechanics writes: “So, any news on the Stargate front? How about how your screenplay is coming along? Do you read digital comics or just hard copies? As I have gotten older, I need a large screen (32 inch) in order to see comics anymore and sometimes even then, use the magnifier app on my laptop HDMI’d to the big screen.

Finally, how did you get Dark Matter from an idea to a comic book?”

Answer: See above. The studio acknowledged fans who supported SGO but pretty much ignored the massive online fan campaign that followed.

The script is coming along. Just received notes and will do one more pass before delivering next week. After that, it’s smooooo – Ah, forget it.

I read digital copies first and, if I truly love the book, will pick up a hard copy. I’m constantly surprised by what I respond to. For instance, a couple of days ago, I decided to check out My Boyfriend is a Bear, a graphic novel written by Pamela Ribon and illustrated by Cat Farris.

I figured it would be a cute, light read but was genuinely surprised by how much I loved this book. Check it out here. It’s one of those books I will buy just so I can gift to friends like Jeanette Walls’ The Glass Castle, John Scalzi’s Old Man’s War, and David Benioff’s City of Thieves.

I prefer digital because it ensures I don’t add to my library of some 100 boxes of books currently sitting in my storage unit. Also, I can adjust the print size and dial up the brightness to levels so blazing that Akemi has to sleep with a pillow over her head.

As for how Dark Matter made the transition to comic books = I simply pitched Dark Horse Comics who liked the idea enough to green light a four issue opening arc.

cudaker writes: “Questions:
-Do we (Canada) Have a potential($) to Host a tv series like Netflix do with their originals..Have you though to summit your scripts to one Canadian network?.”

Answer: Hmmm. Not sure I understand the question. If you’re asking whether Canadian broadcasters have the money to fund original programs like Netflix – I’d say it depends on the series.

“-Do you have a marble in the top lead..wich one ?”

There are currently two marbles in the lead, one sci-fi, the other horror.

TheOtherOne writes: “Here’s a daft question – what is your most perfect day, weather wise, and your favourite season? Please describe in glorious detail so we can experience it too”

Answer: As much as I like the spring and summer weather, there’s nothing I love more than a big, fat-flaked snowfall on a warm winter’s night.

Line Noise writes: “When are we likely to have a visit from Cookie Monster?”

Answer: Soon, soon. Cookie Monster is mustering up the courage to get started. He has a lot of superhero movies to get through.

Jenny Blood writes: “Question: In Dark Matter S3:E9 “Isn’t That a Paradox”, is that Lulu your dog in the scene by the Chocolate Shop?‬”

Answer: Nope. That adorable french bulldog TWO encounters at the park is actually actress Melissa O’Neil’s frenchie, Tehya.

Curtis L Burnett writes: “Hello Sir, I am an Alaskan automotive painter with dreams of becoming a writer. What do you remember being the hardest obstacle to conquer, when you began your writing career? And, what advice would you give to aspiring writers?”

Answer: Getting started is always the hardest part – getting started writing; getting started in the business. The best advice I can give is to make sure you have two solid samples, a spec (based on an existing show) and an original pilot. Attend industry events, make contacts, reach out to agents willing to read submissions from unproduced writers. I actually got my start writing for animation and will always recommend new writers look there first.

Katie writes: “My question is….would you ever consider doing some sort of drawing or something along those lines to read through and note a script? As an aspiring writer I would love to have someone I look up to read and note a script for me.”

Answer: Hmmmm. On the occasions I do agree to read scripts, it’s usually with the understanding that my schedule is erratic and there’s no guarantee when I’ll be able to turn around a response. Also, I make it clear that if someone wants me to invest my time reading their script, they should be prepared for an honest criticism. As a result, interestingly, fully half of the people who send me scripts never contact me again after receiving my feedback.

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Randomness

I hope Stargate Origins wasn’t used as some sort of measure to see how a Stargate series would perform should it be revived. It was such a waste of talent, and so low budget it was awful to watch. Stargate deserves so much better than that.

I do want to comment that the StargateCommand Twitter feed did acknowledge our effort. A Twitter follower asked them, “What’s next from here for you guys? Tweet-storm into any @MGM_Studios meetings? Do you know if the studio was aware of the fan push. Could we see another internet miniseries, etc.”

They responded, “It was a pretty big storm, might have even caught the attention of one or two of the off-world offices.”

Tom then asked, “Did this storm require the use of an 8th chevron? I hope we were heard in neighboring galaxies.”

They responded, “We can neither confirm nor deny.”

To me that was an acknowledgement that we caught someone’s attention. I wonder if the change in MGM leadership–the timing again just sucked for us because that happened shortly after.

But you know, considering how much the franchise made for them, I don’t understand their lack of action. Brooklyn 99 was cancelled and the fans went crazy on Twitter in outrage (trended for hours). NBC picked the series up the next day. We need action like this.

With the hard work everyone did putting the efforts into showing them love in the VERY SHORT TIME we had to gather followers and everyone who participated in the Tweetstorms (and are still engaged now), I just don’t get it. If they are sitting there only looking at what happened with Stargate Origins and maybe they were anticipating that all the Stargate fans would be open to that, and then the saw the push and the love for the Cooper/Wright canon versus a reboot, why wouldn’t you bank on money you already knew was built in if the Wright/Cooper canon was the one people loved. Seems so strange.

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12 May 2018 12:17 pm

TheOtherOne

Thank you Joe for the sweet answer to my Maku-Chan question – I’ve been wanting to ask about that for ages. And the snowflake answer… I shall think of you now when it snows…

As always, great questions, guys.
Thanks Joe, for the informative response